1 Cindi Bisson McGee - Behind These Eyes : how-to
Showing posts with label how-to. Show all posts
Showing posts with label how-to. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Recycled Cardboard Halloween Bat Wreath with Mark Montano - DIY WCK Video


In this episode of the When Creativity Knocks All-Star Designers Holiday Series, Mark Montano shares his fun way of creating a faux distressed metal wreath for Halloween - out of cardboard and DecoArt® Americana Decor™ Chalky Finish paints!  


Thursday, October 22, 2015

Cupcake Birthday Party - DCC & Little B™ Blog Hop

“Little B” Cupcake Birthday Party 

This month the Designer Craft Connection is having a blog hop featuring products from Little B™ LLC.  Each participating Designer got a big box full of creative products to work with - dies, punches, dimensional stickers, Washi tape, paper flowers, and more!  It was like Christmas in September!    The themes of the boxes varied with each Designer so there are sure to be a great assortment of projects to inspire you.  

My box was primarily Birthday themed - with lots of fabulous cupcakes.  So I decided to create a variety of party projects for a Cupcake Birthday Party.  A table display, treat holders, a jar to hold plastic utensils, and cupcake decorations.

Little B™ is also sponsoring an amazing give-away as part of this hop!  $150 worth of product!  Enter using the Rafflecopter link below.

To enter, you must "like" the Little B™ FB page and comment on the blog posts. It's 2 pts for each comment, so the more comments the better the chance you have to win!   Enter until  10/29/15 at 12:00 AM CDT.

Rafflecopter - Little B Giveaway

Be sure to click on the link in the column on the right to find out what the other Designers are sharing too! 




Materials:

These are the Little B™ products used to create these projects
Little B™ Dimensional Stickers 
                - 100144 Cupcakes 
                - 100157 Birthday  Cupcakes 
                - 100167 Birthday 
Little B™ 100600 Happy Birthday Cutting Dies 
Little B™ 100407 Perfect Positioned
Little B™ 100357 Silver Foil Diagonal Stripes Washi Tape - Specialty Foil Tape 
Little B™ 100369 Scallop Circle Punch
DCWV Solstice Stack Patterned Cardstock
Westcott® Scissors 
Toner Fun Wire™ - Marshmallow 
Sizzix® Big Shot™ Machine
White Duck® Tape                  Beacon® 3-in-1 Adhesive 


Instructions:

Table Decoration  

Note:  This die is meant to cut a single piece which is folded to form a card.  Because I wanted to attach several together and create a tabletop decoration instead, I cut the card stock into squares, and placed the first and last pieces face down, and the center piece face up so the words would all be readable on the colored side of the patterned card stock.  If you are using card stock which is colored on both sides, you can cut them as a single piece and cut apart afterwards.  Use Sizzix® Big Shot™ machine and Little B™ Happy Birthday cutting die to cut four different colors of each word. (Little B™ dies come in a fantastic magnetic storage folder - this thing is genius and all of these type of dies should come packaged this way!  No more hunting through a box or bag of dies that have fallen out of the paper packet they come in!)  The Little B™ Perfect Positioner made it easier to die cut because it made it simple to align the die straightly for a perfect cut.   

Attach the words to spell out two sets of Happy Birthday To You.  I placed a small piece of white Duck® tape on the back of each set to hold the words together. (I used Duck® tape because it is a bit sturdier than regular tape would be for holding the pieces in place.)  Repeat with second two sets.  Add Little B™ Silver Foil Diagonal Stripes Washi Tape along bottom edge of both sets of words. 

Add medium sized cupcake from Little B™ Birthday dimensional sticker set to each set of words as shown.  






Cut rectangular piece of 4 1/4" x 3" piece of coordinating patterned card stock and strip of another card stock about 1” wide x 4 1/4".  Mount strip to rectangle as shown using Beacon® 3-in-1 Adhesive.  Mount large cake from Little B™ Birthday set of dimensional stickers.

Attach a set words to each side of rectangle with cake.   Fold, using mountain and valley fold technique, to create table decoration.


Treat Holders 

The size of these treat holders can be adjusted accordingly.  These were made to hold a small bracelet which was made for each guest.  

Cut pieces of coordinating patterned card stocks for however many party goers you expect.
I cut mine 3 1/2” x 9”, then ended up trimming them back a bit afterwards.  

Use Little B™ Scallop Circle punch to punch each piece of card stock on one 3 1/2” end.  Save punched circles for later.

Cut squares of plastic sheet from sticker packaging and use 3-in-1 Adhesive to mount on back side of each piece over punched out area.  

Create two scored lines about 1/4” apart approximately 3 1/2" from edge with punched circle.  Fold and glue together on
sides, letting the scored lines form a bottom for each holder (these will be a small gap - this did not matter for my treats as they would not fall through the gaps).  (This is where I cut the extra from the top - as I said - adjust your size according to the treat that will be given out - my finished holders are about 3 1/2" top to bottom.)
Add a Little B™ cupcake sticker from the Cupcakes set to each window on the treat holders.  Add a piece of the Silver Foil Diagonal Stripes Washi Tape to the top and bottom of each holder.  Place bracelets inside.

Utensil Holder 

Even though cupcakes were the focus, a side of ice cream was still on the menu, so we offered forks or spoons to our guests.  This decorated jar was a fun way to hold them.

Place large cupcake from Little B™ Birthday Cupcakes large dimensional sticker set on the front of the glass jar.  

Add a strip of Silver Foil Diagonal Stripes Washi Tape to the top and bottom of jar.  The tape and the sticker will easily remove from the glass after the party. 

Insert coordinating color of tissue paper an add forks & spoons. 


Cupcake Decorations  

This is an easy and fun way to add some pizazz to the birthday cupcakes without purchasing expensive pre-made decorations.  There's even a special cupcake for the birthday girl.

Cut 14, 6” pieces of Marshmallow/white Toner Fun Wire™.  About 1/2” from one end, coil around straw or pencil ending about 1/4" from opposite end.

Cut apart Birthday Party banner from Birthday dimensional sticker set to create individual letter pennants.  

Use 3-in-1 Adhesive to mount each pennant letter to the 1/4” straight end of wires. 

From punched scalloped circles cut apart and mount together to make one multi-colored circle as shown.  Insert coiled wire without a pennant letter through center.   This will hold a birthday candle for the birthday girl to blow out on her cupcake.

Add each embellishment to the center of a cupcake.  Arrange on table or serving tray to spell out Birthday Party.  

Tip:  If your party goers can’t agree on where to sit at the table - arrange them in order according to which letter cupcake they chose to spell out Birthday Party!




Tuesday, October 20, 2015

etchall® Day of the Dead Decorative Mirror


Day of the Dead crafts are growing in popularity - this mirror combines a variety of mixed media for a finished piece which will make a colorful accent to you home.

Materials:

9" Darice Mirror 
etchall® - Etching Cream, Squeegee 
              - etchnet® stencil - Sugar Skull 
Painters tape 
Makin’s Clay® - Red, Yellow, Green 
                        - Leaves Push mold 
DecoArt® Americana® Multi-Surface Satin™ - Deep Turqouise 
Beacon® Adhesives Tacky Glue 
Toner Plastics™/The Beadery® Skull Beads  Paintbrush 


Instructions:

This was my first time working with the new etchnet® stencils with etchall® cream - and I’m happy to say that the results were absolutely fantastic - one of the cleanest, crispest etches I’ve ever achieved!

Apply etchnet® sugar skull stencil to left side of mirror.  Use painters tape to securely tape in place, ensuring there are no ripples in the stencil. 

Pour etchall® cream on the side of the stencil - NOT ON THE OPEN AREA - Use squeeegee to pull etching cream over onto open areas of stencil, pressing slightly to ensure the cream is evenly applied though the net of the stencil.  Once you are sure you have a good even application over the open areas of the stencil, apply an additional coat of etchall® over the stencil.  Let set 15 minutes.  Return etching cream to bottle, rinse to remove remaining cream and remove stencil.  Clean any remaining cream from stencil and set aside for later use (etchnet® stencils are re-usable). 


Create multiple roses approximately 1” in size from red and yellow Makin’s Clay®.  There are multiple tutorials online for making roses with polymer clay and/or fondant - it really is quite simple!   

Use leaves push mold and green Makin’s Clay® to create multiple leaves for the roses. 

Use Beacon® Tacky Glue to mount roses and leaves as desired on left edge of mirror, extending above and below the etched skull.   Leaves and flowers can be mounted when the clay is still fresh, or after dry (normally the clay will be dry in 24 hours). 

Use Tacky Glue to mount blue skull beads randomly amongst the flowers.  Let dry.



Paint sides of Smoothfoam™ disc with Turquoise Multi-Surface Satin™ paint.  Let dry. 

Apply liberal amount of Tacky Glue to top of Smoothfoam™ disc and mount mirror.  The disc will give added depth when the mirror is mounted to a wall. 



Sunday, October 18, 2015

One Skull - Two Ways - Gothic/Day of the Dead Keychain


Today on the Makin's Clay® blog I'm sharing instructions on how to create this Gothic Skull/Day of the Dead Keychain with Makin's Clay® and DecoArt® products - whether you like it plain and creepy, or colorful and ready to celebrate - it's a super easy project that would make a fun pendant too.  Just in time for Halloween!

Saturday, October 17, 2015

Faux Hand-Carved Wood Bowl


This month on the Smoothfoam™ blog I shared this autumn project - I created a faux hand-carved wood bowl with a Smoothfoam™ half ball and DecoArt® Americana Decor® Chalky Finish paints.  Find the full instructions here.

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Faux Ceramic Halloween Skull Planter - DIY Video Featuring Mark Montano


In this Halloween episode the WCK All-Star Designers Holiday Series Mark Montano shares his technique for turning a plastic Dollar Store skull into a faux-ceramic skull planter using DecoArt products.   

Sunday, October 4, 2015

Vampire Blood/Faux Blood Necklace



My favorite season is here and I can't help myself - I just have to re-share some of my favorite spooky fun projects!  In this episode of my series Behind These Eyes™ on When Creativity Knocks, I share my recipe for creating faux blood using ICE Resin & Rit Dye

And to further add to the creep factor - here's my recipe for the GHOULISH version of faux blood!  


In the Vampire Blood Necklace episode of Behind These Eyes with Cindi Bisson, I share my recipe for faux blood that will last for years. As part of the instructions, I suggest you use a tiny bit of Rit Liquid Dye at a time to color the resin - because if too much dye is used, you get a different result. We didn’t share that result in the episode - but I wanted to show our viewers just what kind of ghoulish results you get with extra dye! It’s a creepy effect too which would work great for some applications - just not for the pendant I was sharing with you. So without further ado…add a teaspoon or more of Rit Liquid Dye (the amount depends on just how crusty you want the finished result to be) to your small amount of mixed ICE Resin and you get what I think looks like clotty, crusty, totally disgusting blood puddles! Which my two boys think are totally cool…Happy Halloween!  


Follow the original instructions and you get smooth, dense puddles of faux blood.

Alter the recipe as above and you get GHOULISH blood!




Friday, February 6, 2015

Smoothfoam™ Jumbo Conversation Hearts!

Everyone loves those little candy conversation hearts you can find everywhere around Valentine's Day (although the messages sure are different these days then when I was young lol!).  Learn how to make my jumbo version featuring DecoArt® Americana® Chalky Finish paint and Craft Attitude™ to decorate your home for Valentine's Day on the Smoothfoam™ blog here.

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Duck Commander® & Makin's Clay® Ornaments

Have friends or family that love to watch Duck Dynasty® or just love the Robertson family values? 
Make them a fun set of holiday ornaments to trim their tree with Makin's Clay® and Duck Commander® stamps from KellyCraft™.

Materials:

KellyCraft™
Duck Commander® Wood - Faith, Family, Ducks
Duck Commander® Wood - Duckaholics Anonymous        
Duck Commander® Clear Polymer Set 1
KellyCraft™- Get-it-Straight™ Laser Square
                     - Multi-Mat™
Makin's Clay® - White
Makin's Professional® Ultimate Clay Machine®
DecoArt® Metallic Lustre™ - Gold
Black Staz-On Inkpad
Westcott® Titanium Bonded Non-Stick scissors
Jute twine, ribbons or dyed fabric strips

Instructions:

1. Remove white clay from packaging and use Ultimate Clay Machine® to roll to approximately 1/8" thick.  Place on Multi-Mat™ (the non-stick, self-healing Multi-Mat™ is the perfect surface for working with the clay!).

2. Ink stamps with black Staz-On ink and stamp onto clay.

3. Use star cutters to cut around stamped images.

4. Use duck cutter to cut shape.

5. Ink "Faith Family Ducks" stamp with black ink.  Use Get-it-Straight™ Laser Square to align stamping and cover surface of duck shape.

6. Use straw to make holes for hanging ornaments.

7. Use fingertip to apply gold Metallic Lustre around outside edges of stars, allowing some to overlap onto ornament front, and apply sparingly over surface of duck ornament over stamped text.

8. Add jute twine, coordinating ribbons or dyed fabric strips (I dyed white cotton sheet fabric with Rit Dye to create these strips - I often use excess dye used for other projects to dye extra fabric to use for ribbon in future projects).





Monday, October 6, 2014

Beaded Spider - DCC October Blog Hop


It's time for the Halloween edition of the Designer Craft Connection blog hop!  Be sure to follow the link to the right to see what the other participating designers are sharing to add some BOO to your world! 

This beaded spider was a snap to create - I followed the directions in the most recent episode of When Creativity Knocks - We visited Crafted at the Port of LA and Mary Austin from Twisted Sisters showed us how easy it was to create these little bejeweled crawlers.  I couldn't resist whipping one up for myself!    Add a pin back, or make  a necklace for him to hang from as a pendant - or perch him on a pumpkin like I did for a little creepy fun.   

Materials: 

22/24 Gauge wire
Jewelry pliers
Black seed beads, black bugle beads, round glass bead for head
Connie Crystal blue bicone beads, large blue glass bead for body
Bead caps 

Follow the instructions in the episode below to create your own spider you don't want to squish! 










Sunday, September 7, 2014

"Cow Country" Table Runner with Kunin® Group, Buttons Galore & More & Beacon Adhesives


I was happy to have the chance to be a part of the Kunin™ Group, Buttons Galore & More and Beacon® Adhesives Designer Craft Connection blog hop!   My felt package arrived and I couldn’t have been happier - our kitchen & dining room has a “farm animal” theme with cows, chickens and more as accents.  The cow patterned felt was a perfect fit!  Paired with BurlapFabric.com fabric, I was able to create a table runner for our table that fits right in with our country decor.  Be sure to follow the DCC link in the right column to see what other creative projects our designers are sharing.  

Don't forget to enter here for a chance at a great give-a-way package too!


Materials: 

Kunin™ Group:  Fancifelt™ - Cowpoke, Embossed Felt - Black Alligator, Creatology™ felt - Antique White  
Buttons Galore & More - assorted blue buttons 
Beacon® Fabri-Tac Adhesive 
KellyCraft™ Get-it-Straight™ Laser Square
Westcott® Handheld Titanium Bonded Paper Cutter with Safety Shield 
Westcott® Stainless Steel Ruler 
Westcott® Craft Self-Healing Cutting Mat 
Blue embroidery floss, needle


Instructions: 

Step 1:  Use Westcott® self-healing mat, ruler and handheld cutter to measure and cut six 4” x 4” squares from Cowpoke, Black  Alligator and Antique White Kunin™ felt. 

Step 2:  Cut BurlapFabric.com burlap to 18” x 30”.   Remove some threads from all edges to create frayed edge. 

Step 3:  Use Get-it-Straight™ Laser Square to align felt squares, centered on burlap, and adhere with Beacon® Fabri-Tac adhesive.  


Step 4:  Stitch blue Buttons Galore & More buttons to all corners of squares with embroidery floss.  


Monday, September 1, 2014

"A View of London" Vintage Window Photo Frame


This month's Designer Craft Connection blog hop theme is "Vacation Memories" - making this a perfect time to share my latest  project - "A View of London" Vintage Window Photo Frame with lettering etched with etchall® etching cream.   Be sure to follow the DCC Blog Connection link in the column on the right to see what other vacation memory projects our designers are sharing!

Materials:

Repurposed window - with loose paint removed and windows cleaned
Photos
Scrapbook paper
Westcott®  TrimAir Premium Titanium Paper Trimmer, 12" wide
etchall® Etching Cream and Designer Tip Kit
DecoArt® Glass Paint Marker™ - white
AdTech® hot glue gun & glue sticks
Paper towels

Instructions:

Step 1:  Measure the panes of your vintage/repurposed window.  Print photos for each pane of the window.   Trim with Westcott® TrimAir Trimmer.

Step 2:  My printer would not allow for printing the photos as large as the window panes, so I layered my photos onto scrapbook paper cut to the exact window size.

Step 3:  Select font for window writing and print in desired size.  Tape to back of window.  Apply etchall® etching cream using etchall® Designer Tip Kit over the letters.

Step 4:  Allow etchall® cream to set 15 minutes, then return cream to jar for later use and clean window.

Step 5:  On back of window, add small lines and dots with white DecoArt® paint pen to highlight each etched letter and number.

Step 6:  Mount photos to back of glass in each pane using AdTech® hot glue to hold in place.

Now every night at dinner we can enjoy our "View of London" and remember the fun we had exploring all it had to offer!

Sunday, July 13, 2014

Burlap Apples & Display Bowl


BurlapFabric.com is sponsoring this amazing blog hop featuring projects from 20 Designer Craft Connection designers - Be sure to follow the links below to visit their blogs and see what they are sharing too, and sign up to win the amazing prize package BurlapFabric.com is offering!

I decided to try making burlap apples with the red burlap I received in my box of burlapy goodness from BurlapFabric.com - and a decorative "bowl" to display them in (I like the "bowl" so much I plan to display other seasonal goodies in it too!).   Don't let the multiple steps overwhelm you - it's easier than it looks to create your own burlap apples!

Materials: 

BurlapFabric.com red burlap, regular burlap, frayed edge 1" burlap ribbon, 3 1/2" burlap ribbon with black stripe top and bottom
Smoothfoam™ balls - 3 7/8"
Westcott® Craft Knife, Self-Healing Cutting Mat, Titanium Bonded® Non-Stick Scissors
AdTech® Glue Gun & Glue Sticks
DecoArt® Americana Multi-Surface Craft Paint - Apple Green
Spanish moss, paintbrush
Real apple for reference and mid-project snack (optional lol!)

Instructions:

1) Use craft knife to cut approximately 2" circle, then add 4 cuts inside.

2) Remove foam from top of ball.

3) Use craft knife to carefully trim/scrape away around edges of removed portion to create curve of top of apple.

4) Use craft knife to cut approximately 1" circle from bottom of ball, remove foam.

5) Use craft knife to create 4 small arcs/curves around hole on bottom of ball (like the arcs on the bottom of a real apple).

6) Carefully use end of scissor to create hole inside top and bottom openings on ball (you will tuck burlap ends into these holes).

7) Cut 5 petal shaped pieces from red burlap, approximately 5" x 2" in the center (I used my cutting mat as a guide for sizing each petal).

8) Add small amount of hot glue to one end of first petal, tuck into hole on top of apple.

9) Bring bottom of petal to base of apple, add small amount of glue and tuck into hole at bottom of apple.  Add small amount of hot glue on each side and adhere to foam ball.

10) Add small amount of glue to second petal, tuck into top of foam ball, slightly overlapping first piece of burlap.

11) Turn apple over, add small amount of hot glue to sides of petal, and mount to foam ball overlapping first piece of burlap.

12-13) Add small amount of hot glue to bottom point and tuck into bottom of apple.
Repeat with remaining petals until Smoothfoam™ ball is completely covered and your apple is ready for the stem & leaf.

14) Cut 3" piece of frayed edge burlap ribbon.   Tightly roll and use small amount of hot glue to adhere to create stem.

15) Use hot glue to mount stem into hole at top of apple.

16) From plain burlap, cut leaf shapes.

17) Paint both sides with Apple Green multi-surface paint and let dry.

18) Use hot glue to mount leaves to stems on top of apples.

To create the display bowl - I upcycled!   I used a clean chipboard potato stick can (and sadly, I had to eat the rest of the potato sticks in order to empty the can - it was a hard sacrifice but worth it for the finished project), but any sized can would work depending on how big you want your finished display bowl to be.

19) Use Westcott® Titanium Bonded® scissors (I love these scissors!  They are STRONG enough to cut through almost anything!) to remove top of can and leave 3" sides from base of can.

20) Use hot glue to mount burlap ribbon around can (it will extend about 1/2" off the top edge of the can).  Add Spanish moss.


Here are the links to the blogs for the other participating designers:

Carmen Flores Tanis   http://www.florestanisstudio.com
Jennifer Priest   http://www.hydrangeahippo.com
Lisa Fulmer    http://www.lisalizalou.com
Sue Eldred   http://www.sueeldred.com
Susan Brown   http://www.sbartist.com

And here's how you can win the fabulous prize package valued at $100 that includes a really nice variety of natural and colored burlap yardage, ribbons, embellishments and totes.  They have several ways to enter by leaving a comment on my blog and by following the DCC, BurlapFabric.com and Craft Foxes on social media. - http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/73bd0b11/







Monday, July 7, 2014

Country Style Luau Mason Jars


Summer is here and it's time for backyard barbecues and parties!  This month's Designer Craft Connection theme is Party Decor - so it's a perfect time for me to share these Country Style Luau Mason Jars I'm using to hold silverware and straws for our country style backyard luau!   Be sure to follow the DCC clickable link in the right column of my blog to see what other creative Party Decor projects our amazing designers are sharing to inspire you!

Materials:

Ball Mason Jars - Heritage Green pint size (you could use regular - but I love the combination of the green glass with the red & yellow - seemed more tropical to me!)
BurlapFabric.com Red Burlap
Westcott® Titanium Bonded® Non-Stick Scissors, Self-Healing Cutting Mat
DecoArt® Americana® acrylic paint - White Wash
Small paintbrush
Yellow ribbons (I used 3 different styles)
Wood Attitude® printable craft film
Conputer & printer
Wooden tags, string
AdTech Glue Gun & Glue Sticks
Elmer's Craft Bond Glue stick

Instructions:

Use cutting mat as a guide to measure out 4" x 11" strips of red burlap - cut with scissors.

Use small paintbrush and white acrylic paint to paint hibiscus flowers onto red burlap (I found an image of a hibiscus flower online to use as a guide).  Let dry.

Following manufacturer instructions, type and print Hawaiin words onto sheet of Wood Attitude® printable craft film (I googled Hawaiin words, then printed off words to create a custom message on my tags….. can you figure out what the message says?)

Trim words and mount to small wooden tags using glue stick, add string to tags.

Fray edges of painted red burlap by removing threads about 1/4" in on top and bottom edges.  Wrap around mason jars and adhere with small amount of hot glue.  Add decorative ribbons to top rim of jars, tie on wooden tags.


Be sure to come back on July 13th for 20 more creative projects featuring burlap products in a DCC Blog Hop sponsored by BurlapFabric.com - and enter to win their fabulous prize package valued at $100 that includes a really nice variety of natural and colored burlap yardage, ribbons, embellishments and totes.  They will have several ways to enter including leaving a comment on my blog and following the DCC, BurlapFabric.com, and Craft Foxes on social media!  



Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Makin's Clay® Groovy Flowers Earrings


Find the how-to instructions to create your own pair of Groovy Flower Earrings on the Makin's Clay® blog - http://makinsclayblog.blogspot.com/2014/06/makins-clay-groovy-flower-earrings.html

Friday, June 20, 2014

Smoothfoam Moss Cube Vase

Make this simple moss covered cube vase with Smoothfoam™ - Find out how on the Smoothfoam blog - http://www.smoothfoam.com/blog/moss-cube-vase/


Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Bluebird of Happiness Baby Shower - Part 2

In this final episode of the WCK All-Star Designers' Spring Series, Ana Araujo and Jonathan Fong share great projects for our Bluebird of Happiness Baby Shower!   One of the best things about being on the WCK team is getting to work with amazing designers like we did this time on the Spring Series - Jonathan Fong, Mark Montano, Judi Watanabe, Laura Bray and more.   The summer series is fast approaching and Ana and I will be joined by Judi Watanabe, Marisa Pawelko and Elena Lai Etcheverry!


Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Cupcake Mason Jar Treat Holder

Today I'm sharing the latest episode of When Creativity Knocks - I'm showing the attendees at the Smoothfoam booth at CHA how to create this adorable treat jar designed by Julie McGuffee!



Tuesday, January 28, 2014